A Successful Periop 101 Program—What Role Do You Play?

Administrators, preceptors, and students all play important roles in the success of your Periop 101 program. AORN provides the tools and resources needed to build the relationships between these roles and to ensure each participant has the individual support they need to be successful.

If you still have questions after reviewing the resources and FAQs below, feel free to contact us and we'll be happy to provide you with the information you need.

Administrator

You’ll coordinate the learning activities, clinical preceptorships, and monitor the use of AORN’s e-learning platform. Your preceptors and students will look to you as a knowledgeable resource. You’ll set the tone of the program and create the expectations for both the preceptors and students.

Preceptor

As preceptor, you’ll help connect the Periop 101 content to your facility’s clinical practice setting. This important role helps the nurses successfully adapt to your specific perioperative setting. You’ll also serve as a role model, perioperative resource, and clinical supervisor.

Student

Your role is to actively participate and get the most out of the course. You’ll receive a complimentary AORN membership to help further your perioperative learning and professional growth. Ultimately, you’ll be responsible for keeping your patients safer by applying your new Periop 101 knowledge at your facility every day.

Let Us Help You Make Your Case

We understand that making the decision to implement Periop 101 at your facility will more than likely be a team decision. Use this Executive Summary to help make your case.

Frequently Asked Questions

Administrators – 2-year access for their own course and the student courses

Students – 6-month access for students from the first time they log into the course.

Preceptors – 3-month access from their online registration date to complete the module and print their certificate. Printable handouts are included in the course modules for students and in the Preceptor Certificate Program for preceptors. Free, automatic updating of course materials by AORN staff is done on an as-needed basis.

Free CEs:

41.7 CH for RN students who pass the OR course final examination at 80% or greater.

35.6 CH for RNs who pass the OB course final exam at 80% or greater.

43.25 CH for RNs who pass the Ambulatory Surgery Center course final exam at 80% or greater.

Preceptor Certificate Program for the first two (2) or four (4) preceptors (a $179 value) per Periop 101 agreement (depending on number of student seats purchased) and includes 4.0 nursing contact hours. The preceptor program includes 3 modules—the 3 post-tests and evaluations must be completed to receive contact hours.

If students are already AORN members, they can extend their membership (member-at-large status) free for one year. Local chapter membership is not included. (AORN reserves the right to terminate this offer.)

Discounts on recommended Cine-Med videos in DVD format. An online video subscription option is also available and may be preferred by facilities with multiple sites. Discounts are good for the term of your Periop 101 agreement. Click here for an updated list of the recommended videos and specific discounts.

Free, frequent course updates, based on revisions of AORN’s Guidelines of Perioperative Practice.

How are the fees structured?

Student seat fees are based on how many student seats are purchased at one time—student seat purchases are not cumulative. However, once you have purchased a certain number of student seats at one time, that price is locked in for the balance of your term. Example: If you bought 11 seats in one purchase, then 11 more, and then 11 more, your seat prices is still locked into the 11-29 bracket because you never bought more than 11 at one time. However, if you bought 11 in one purchase and then bought 31 more at one time, you would be moved to the 30-49 seat bracket. Your student seat price will never be raised during your term—it will only stay the same or lower.

The seats you buy now are good to start any time within your 2-year term. You can add and use more student seats at any time during the 2-year term. Those seats just need to be started (students must have opened up the course online) before your 2-year term expires, or you lose them. They do not carry over into another 2-year term.

Are there any additional fees related to the course?

Yes, additional fees may include the following:

$375 for additional course Administrator registrations. There are two registration included in the course fee. This fee includes access to the ALC, online Administrator Implementation Guide, and Periop 101: A Core Curriculum™ modules for the balance of the facility’s two-year term.

$179 for additional Preceptor Certificate Program registrations after your free seats have been used. This fee gives the preceptor access to the module for 90 days.

Additional student seats may be purchased throughout the term of your agreement with fees based on the number of seats purchased at one time.

Students can take the exam three times at no extra cost. If students do not pass the third time, the administrator registers the student for a new seat, and the student will need to pay for the course again.

Optional: Periop 101 student pins for those who have passed the final exam are available for purchase by the Periop 101 Administrator. Preceptor pins are also available. Both pins are $10 each, including shipping, and may be purchased by calling AORN Experience Services at 1-800-755-2676.

What additional materials do we need to implement the course?

There are required textbook reading assignments, as well as recommended video titles. The textbooks or a Facility Reference Center subscription may be ordered through AORN. The recommended video titles in DVD format or online video library subscription may be purchased from AORN’s partner, Cine-Med.

What are the online system requirements?

Click here for the online system requirements. If you are accessing the program through your work computer, please contact your IT Department to confirm your system requirements.

After submitting my Periop 101 Order Form/Terms and Conditions and payment to AORN, what happens next?

After AORN receives your completed and signed Periop 101 Order Form and payment, AORN will e-mail the designated Administrator with the information needed to register as a Periop 101 Administrator and start the required Administrator Implementation Guide. Purchase orders are not considered payment; AORN must receive a check, credit card payment, or electronic transfer before Periop 101 is activated and access provided. AORN's order form serves as your invoice.

What is the expiration date of the Periop 101 agreement?

The 2-year term expiration date will be in your first confirmation email sent by AORN. If you lose it, you can contact Experience Services at cs@aorn.org. Many times your own Administrator expiration date that you see is not the same as the facility 2-year term expiration date, so do not use your own expiration date.

How long does it typically take for a student to complete the course?

The student’s 6-month term starts on the date the student accesses their first Periop 101 module. Completion times may vary due to class size, student experience, student availability, and resources. It is up to the Administrator to set up the students’ schedules so that they pass the final exam by the end of six months.

How long does the student have Periop 101 access?

The student’s 6-month term begins the day they open their first module of the program. The final exam must be taken before the student’s term expires and access is denied. The students can see their expiration dates each time they open up Periop 101.

What is the Periop 101 Administrator's role?

The Administrator is responsible for coordinating the online didactic course and book learning, the clinical practicum, and skills labs, as well as management of the ALC. Administrators will need to meet regularly with the students to accomplish additional tasks, such as answer students’ questions from the textbook reading assignments and online learning modules, review the post-tests, introduce facility-specific policies, complete some of the suggested group exercises together (including demos and skills labs), view the recommended videos, share experiences, bring in guest speakers, and make sure module concepts are completely understood. The student’s clinical practicum/preceptorship will need to be arranged by the Periop 101 Administrator and supervised by a preceptor.

How do I register my administrators, students, and preceptors?

This information is included in the first email (administrator registration) and second email (student and preceptor registration) that Administrators receive.

Using the MLA # in the first email received, the Administrator registers and completes the Administrator Implementation Guide AND separate Administrator Evaluation.

Completing the Administrator Evaluation causes a certificate to be generated, the contact hours to be awarded, and an automated email with student and registration instructions to be sent to the Administrator.

The Administrator receives the automated email with attached instructions to send to the students and preceptors with their MLA #.

After students have registered using the email from the Administrator, an automated email is sent to the Administrator to let them know as each student registers in the ALC.

Students and preceptors register for a Learning Center account using the MLA# provided and will select a learning plan as assigned by the administrator. NOTE: If your facility only has one learning plan, students will not need to make a selection.

The administrators will receive a confirmation email that their student or preceptor has successfully registered.

What if our Administrator leaves? Are Administrator seats transferable?

Administrator seats are non-transferable. If the course Administrator leaves, your facility may identity a new Administrator and use one of your two (2) complimentary Administrator seats, if you have not already used them. If you have used both seats, additional Administrator seats may be purchased.

Are student or preceptor registrations transferable?

No. Student and preceptor registrations/seats are not transferable once the person has registered online for the course.

How many seats do I have available?

Administrators can check their seat counts on the Dashboard. To do this, click on the Dashboard tab and then the Products tab. If the seat count appears as 12/25 (example), this means their facility has used 12 seats out of the 25 seats that were purchased and there are 13 remaining seats.

How do I purchase more seats?

Click here and download the order form that includes the start year of your last Periop 101 2-year agreement/renewal. This link is also found on your Dashboard in the middle column under Quick Help.

How do I change the student seat type?

Contact AORN Experience Services at cs@aorn.org, and they can switch your student seats between OR, OB, and ASC for you.

Where can I see the modules my students are taking?

Administrators have access to the same modules the students have whether they are taking the OR, OB, or ASC program. Your student modules are listed as a subset of your Administrator Learning Plan. To see what modules students have completed, the administrator just needs to run the “Enrollments by Group” report under the Dashboard tab..

How do I access student progress reports?

The “Enrollments by Group” report is available on the Dashboard under the Reports tab. It shows the start date, activity status, completion date, time spent, and score for each module post-test, evaluation, and final exam for your students and preceptors.

Do students need to have completed their entire clinical time in the OR before taking the final exam?

Students are not required to complete their entire clinical time in the OR before taking the final exam. However, they should complete a significant portion of their clinical hands-on time in the OR before taking the exam so they are able to answer the questions requiring skills in patient assessment, decision-making, and analytical, clinical reasoning. Please refer to the AORN “Position Statement on Orientation of the Registered Nurse and Certified Surgical Technologist to the Perioperative Setting” found on the AORN website.

Why can't the student access the final exam?

All Periop 101 modules (except QSEN) must be completed before the course evaluation opens up for them. The course evaluation must be completed before the final exam is accessible. After they pass the final exam, they must completed a second, Final Exam Evaluation before their contact hours are awarded.

What are the requirements for the final exam?

The final exam should be taken in a closed-book, closed-notes, proctored environment with no electronic devices. There is a 4-hour time limit. Information is in the Final Exam section in both the Administrator Implementation Guide and Student Start-up Module.

How do you proctor an exam?

Proctored means monitored, which requires the students to be visible to the proctor while they are taking the exam. The proctor is also the one who checks to see that students do not have any of the prohibited items listed above.

How many attempts do students have to take the final exam?

Students have three (3) free attempts to pass the final exam. If a student is not successful on the third attempt, the administrator will need to register the student for a new seat, and the student will need to go through the course again.

Why didn't the students get their contact hours after completing the final exam?

They didn't complete the second evaluation (called the Final Exam Evaluation) that appears only after the student has passed the final exam. After the Final Exam Evaluation is completed, the certificate will be generated, contact hours awarded, and the administrator receives an automated email to let them know the student passed the exam.

What does the complimentary AORN membership include for Periop 101 students?

Periop 101 students will receive a 1-year AORN member-at-large membership. Click here to learn about the valuable benefits of your member-at-large membership. If students are already AORN members, they can extend their membership (member-at-large status) free for one year. Local chapter membership is not included with this complimentary offer. AORN reserves the right to terminate this offer.

How can I recognize my students when they pass the final exam?

We recommend the Periop 101 Pin. Administrators can purchase pins for $10 each, including shipping, by calling AORN Experience Services at 1-800-755-2676.

How can I recognize my preceptors?

We recommend the Preceptor Pin. Administrators can purchase pins for $10 each, including shipping, by calling AORN Experience Services at 1-800-755-2676.